Michael Stevens, Ph.D.

Dr. Michael Stevens grew up in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York, a virulent Buffalo Bills and New York Yankees fan, and became a believer in his early teens through the ministry of Calvary Baptist Church in Harford, N.Y., and the prayers of his godly mom.

After receiving a B.S. in Pre-Seminary Studies from Baptist Bible College (Clark’s Summit, Pa.) and an M.A. in Liberal Education from St. John’s College (Annapolis, Md.), he married Linda Merkel of Central Islip, N.Y., and they moved immediately to Irving, Texas, where Linda received her B.A. in English and Michael his Ph.D. in Literature from the University of Dallas.

After working as a residence hall director at Grove City College (Pa.), Dr. Stevens began teaching in the Humanities Division at Cornerstone University in 1997, teaching mostly American Literature, Creative Writing and Humanities courses within the university core curriculum.

Dr. Stevens has written extensively, often with his friend and colleague Dr. Matt Bonzo, on the work of the Kentucky poet-novelist-essayist-farmer Wendell Berry, especially Berry’s notions of sustainable communities and active peace-making. Dr. Stevens has also written on baseball history, especially as it correlates with other elements of American intellectual history. He is currently writing a year-long devotional on how to become rooted, aimed at twenty-somethings.

Dr. Stevens and Linda have three children: Ethan (1997), Julia (2000) and Gabriel (2002), as well as two cats and two rats.

“What matters to me most about teaching at Cornerstone is that I can help open the world of the imagination for students, within the broader context of God’s creative work in their lives and in the world at large. I feel the privilege and the freedom on this task—and also the great joy of it!”